Every time a moderator has to intervene is a warning. Every time someone edits their post and says "Sorry Erek" as the reason should serve as a warning. Blatant trolling should be more projection than warning, but for simplicity's sake it can be seen as a warning.

Most people that posted there could not separate themselves from their character. It was becoming Tumblr with a different signature and profile picture. At that point, you might as well just go talk in your faction forums, at least there y'all get less worked up.

The Hellions are one of the only groups on SWC that actively RP on the SWC site and they're considered egotistical trolls? Maybe the egotistical people are the ones who keep their RPs hidden away on their own private websites instead of making use of SWC Meeting Hall as an intended game function.

The Red Scenario days are over. It's safe to come out from under your forum rocks now and RP on the SWC forum. :-)

That's not a reason to rule it like the Ukrainian Rebellion: when you shoot down a forum, the least is to at least indicate it in the sim news and not wait for people to discover by themselves that it vanished from the radars.

Anyway, I'm sad to see it disappear. I'll be poutin for the rest of the day. Sure it have its flaws, but that board was truely making SWC a better place, by allowing people to express their IC feelings on other topics that "ZOMG Corey Vildras attempted scam! Btw who owns the [NR]Smelly feet?"

In character, the very idea is a concept lost on a lot of this community. 2749 active members, 95% of which wouldn't know how to separate IC and OOC if either their OOC or IC lives depended on it. Why have another forum for players to gripe in under the guise of it being in character?

As an active member of the roleplaying community of this game for over a decade it saddens me to have seen it take such a back seat to a point and click economy simulator, and giving people another medium to further drag down an already fragile state is terrible.

The opinions voiced throughout a lot of the posts were out of character comments, hidden behind an incredibly piss poor attempt at in character interaction while the Meeting Hall, an area built specifically for in character interaction is widely neglected as well is the irc room dedicated to it also.

Seeing people like Siarica griping makes me laugh, express their IC feelings... I've seen you express them honey bunch, mostly in an out of character fashion...

Take a more active role in the in character areas provided. Play your characters as opposed to using them as a means of soap boxing insignificant opinions on matters that are just as insignificant.

After all, if roleplaying and in character interactions were truly that important it wouldn't be the same people starting the same scenarios with slightly altered plot points every week in the Meeting Hall. It would be a wash with a billion ideas, spattered with creativity and not something that gives me a nose bleed whenever I open a thread.

And with Banquo's post, I think this thread can rather safely be closed. Keeping this thread open for the aforementioned Combiners to spill their poorly collected thoughts onto a post won't bring the Galactic Message Exchange any closer to being resurrected.

It's hard to be creative when everything in Meeting Hall has already been thought of and executed in a poorly organized fashion. The only reason SWC's RP community has suffered is because no one USES the Meeting Hall anymore. If you actually did that instead of focusing on inactive White Scenarios on a completely different site, then maybe just maybe it would encourage the newer and older players alike to join in.

If people are so worked up about the GME being nuked, why not just create some simple offsite forum for the exact same purpose and spread the word about it? If you really want to have some IC 'holonet' space then put the work in, be creative, and get people to participate.

SWC has a history of successful offsite sites that people have created over the years like the Galactic Gaming Corp, Centrepoint, Shockball, Trade Fed Market, etc.

If it's something you're really interested, think outside the box and make it work.

“95% of which wouldn't know how to separate IC and OOC if either their OOC or IC lives depended on it.”

Touché. Speaking from experience, there is a huge gap between "RPing a situation where you are captured" and "RPing while your character is under arrest". When just RPing, such as in the meeting hall, I am more tempted to take risks and even attempt at overdoing it (read:godmodding), while under arrest I turn into a coward ready to make any compromises to keep my character alive, even if I know I am not playing the way my character should. There is a few people able to keep the same type of RP free or under arrest, and I have a deep admiration and respect for theses 5%.

That's why things like Red Scenarios, supervised by a skilled and relatively unbiased Game Master, could solve such issue.

“The opinions voiced throughout a lot of the posts were out of character comments, hidden behind an incredibly piss poor attempt at in character interaction”

Agreed, a lot of persons are unable to separate OOC feelings from IC feelings. Haven't we all said or thought "I hate that guy because he's the respawn of X or Y?

“while the Meeting Hall, an area built specifically for in character interaction is widely neglected”

95% of the meeting hall is useless garbage, and the remaining 5% are posts who are deleted because they're OOC.

“the irc room dedicated to it also [neglected].”

And it is understandeable. A cantina setting is pointless, as it will be used for 1) noobs godmodding and overdoing it and 2) a hangout for people to flirt before cybering in PM.

“It's hard to be creative when everything in Meeting Hall has already been thought of and executed in a poorly organized fashion.

- Lara”

Agreed. Perhaps some white scenarios moderators should do white scenarios in the meeting hall?

“why not just create some simple offsite forum for the exact same purpose and spread the word about it?

- Mephiston”

I am currently unavailable until september for RL reasons, but it will be definitively something I'll follow closely.

Do you want the Meeting Hall closed? This is how you get the Meeting Hall closed.

Do you not realize that this administration and all others previous do not care about in game RP? Yes, there was an attempt at it and it was okay for a bit, but ultimately canned as the game was not designed for it.

This game does not promote character development, it certainly will not reward you for it. Most players don't see their character as a precious thing, but more like another resource to be used like Credits and such. (i.e. Re-Rolling to become a Force Sensitive, or to infiltrate another organization)

The very few tools you do have are under-utilized and I think it amazing that White Scenarios are even still around (considering their direct link to the previously outlawed Red Scenarios). The Meeting Hall is unoriginal, but originality is hard to come by in a game that's 15 years old and some of its active membership are just as old or older (from SW Rebellion days). I am a player of nearly 15 years and have seen it all.

So count your blessings, folks. Enjoy what you have, while you have it. I will miss the GME as it was a way for a faction leader such as myself to get in touch with others and pseudo keep track of Alliances/Allegiances/Pacts/etc. Weylin had done a superb job as its original moderator and was a willing individual. (hard to find willing people anymore)

I have had my suggestions in the past and it always fell on deaf ears. Polite nods and smiles, a pat on the back and a 'We appreciate your input, former admin Ikron'. It's really the nods and smiles that just drives the nail in the coffin - this game is a resource management game and could have made much more money re-branded to be current with the times. It was the first Farmville of its time and if it had gone that route both Fizzban and Veynom would have been multi-millionaires. But keeping the Star Wars name came at a price with lawyers attached.

Summary: Do not expect In Character development in a game not designed to have it.

White Scenarios -> participation is rewarded.
Meeting Hall -> other plans are in the works. We thank you for your input, Mr. Ikron.

GME -> Essentially you communicated with terrorists hourly/daily, rather than having a secretary or PR officer do so.

The current administration has made several decisions based upon the role-playing aspect of the Darkness Engine. If you have any further suggestions, we would be happy to hear them. If we tell you they are bad ideas, it won't be by patting you on the back. We are not necessarily your friends, I apologize if you dislike that.

Your previous experience as an RS Moderator aside, you seem to be someone more interested in decrying its gameplay and staff than in helping to bring it closer to what you see as an ideal experience.

“GME -> Essentially you communicated with terrorists hourly/daily, rather than having a secretary or PR officer do so.

- Erek”

For this reason, I will consider the GME as a success. It means that the GME became what the SWC administration feared: the galactic 4chan. A place where all boundaries are abolished, and people could freely express their feelings, regardless of who they are.

Geuss the only solution is to create a forum outside SWC, but will it be allowed to be promoted? And if so, where?

I don't expect SWC to be a democracy, but SWC is more then about trade. The GME had great pottential to learn new players that SWC has more to offer then commerce.
That should atleast be taken into consideration.
Agreed, the forum wasnt perfect, but if its so hard to moderate. Then why not request assistance from vets that have experience with the old red scenario's and the current white scenario's?

“Agreed, a lot of persons are unable to separate OOC feelings from IC feelings. Haven't we all said or thought "I hate that guy because he's the respawn of X or Y?”

its not so much that people hate people because they are the respawn of X, its that they play the same annoying character across multiple lives. Which gets old really fast.

“For this reason, I will consider the GME as a success. It means that the GME became what the SWC administration feared: the galactic 4chan.”

4Chan is the worst place on the internet, and I would never want any part of our forums to be like that cesspool of trolls. External forums are perfect for that, where we dont have it directly seen by new players or people who want nothing to do with said forum type.

You creating a website is far different from us allowing a board to be owned and operated by our staff. The creators of reddit, tumblr, and 4chan do not also keep our world ticking. Their sole focus is on promoting and regulating their social media (and they do not in any way even attempt to keep it PG-13).

Your vision of the GME was not our vision of the GME. So while your 'ebil plan' may have worked for a while, it's over now. Good has prevailed hee-yah.

Neria: It was not difficult to moderate so much as... counterproductive to moderate. We were hoping that people would see it as one thing and they saw it as another. It may also be noted that the original moderator was a 'veteran moderator' prior to his removal.

White Scenarios -> participation is rewarded.
Meeting Hall -> other plans are in the works. We thank you for your input, Mr. Ikron.

- Erek”

How can you prove (or care) that a member didn't re-roll to infiltrate or obtain FS? Someone can be extra careful and not get caught. Infiltration takes time and frankly, you guys have a lot on your plate to attend to. Yes, you have rules - but they are not 100% enforced.

White Scenarios - I will give you that if your scenario completes, XP is rewarded (unless it has gone back to how it used to be which was incremental). How many WS Scenarios complete?

Meeting Hall - Great! What are you looking to do and is there an opportunity for active members to help?

ICly, the GME was described as 'an IC place to discuss IC things'. If it was anything else, it certainly was not branded as such. My character never was in the same place as any other character. You cite my latest involvement decrying said terrorist on their activities, which my character actually would do. IF you believe that MY character should act a certain way, please enlighten me, I must have been doing this wrong for 15 years. Suggesting an aide or someone else do it, segregates certain players from actually utilizing the former service. Your argument does not make sense. For the record, I also brought up other topics of interest (such as the Galactic Civil War) that 'terrorists' were not part of.

Banquo was correct to establish that some individuals (who will rename nameless) have a very difficult time establishing that IC and OOC boundry (mainly what a player knows vs what a character knows). Unfortunately that is an indicator of an issue and as much as I personally liked GME, I agree that it ultimately had to go. It was only going to get worse and guess what - I support ya in that.

====

“The current administration has made several decisions based upon the role-playing aspect of the Darkness Engine. If you have any further suggestions, we would be happy to hear them. If we tell you they are bad ideas, it won't be by patting you on the back. We are not necessarily your friends, I apologize if you dislike that.

Your previous experience as an RS Moderator aside, you seem to be someone more interested in decrying its gameplay and staff than in helping to bring it closer to what you see as an ideal experience.

- Erek”

I'm not attacking you nor anyone in particular, but expressing my opinion. If you think this opnion to be unpopular, that is also your opinion. No harm in that. I'm not looking to go pub crawling with you either, I'm just an end user, a group of pixels not worth second thought.

However...

When I was the RS Admin, I had to deal with the player base and my moderators and manage all database changes and award XP to both RS and WS. If you do not think I know what it is like on that side, you are slightly mistaken. I say slightly ONLY because I never did coding.

RS were completely screwed up. I suggested to Veynom that they be closed for many reasons and it was supported by him so that I could re-work the RS rules. I came back with new staff, new rules and a way forward. I didn't sit there, I worked and presented. Ultimately, it was let go and the project fell off with RS 2.0. It was a business decision and I get that. But it also was an indicator at how this game was going to be developed for the future. I'm certainly not mad at SWC or Veynom, etc.. I got to independantly perfect RS 2.0 into a working game rebranded under a different title to avoid any legal issues. So I'm not mad! I'm still here!

Keep up the great work. You are a valuable member of this team. I will give any suggestions that I have if information becomes more transparent. Have a good day.